White House Urges Schools to Carry Naloxone and Train Staff, Students on its Use

The Biden administration this week is asking all schools to carry the opioid overdose antidote naloxone and to train staff and students on its use, Axios reports.

The Office of National Drug Control Policy and the Department of Education sent a letter to every state education agency, intergovernmental groups and local, state and national education associations.

“There is no time to waste when responding to an overdose, and it is critical that youth and school personnel can access naloxone on school grounds during and after school,” the letter said. It states that “data show that two-thirds of adolescent drug poisoning deaths occurred with a potential bystander nearby, but naloxone was often not administered.”

Some schools already stock naloxone, the article notes. NPR recently reported that the Los Angeles Unified School District began keeping it in all schools last year. Over the course of the school year, naloxone was administered 31 times. This school year, 11 of the 20 largest school districts in the country stocked naloxone in all of their schools, according to an NPR analysis. Last year, just five of the 20 did.